Shield for ship s guns



(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 1. N. B. CLARK.

SHIELD FOR SHIPS GUNS. e r.11,1882.

Patent files I:

N. PETERS Phawum m her, Washinginn, D. c.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

N. B. CLARK.

SHIELD FOR SHIPS GUNS.

No. 256,124. Patented Apr. 11,1882.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

N. B. CLARK.

SHIELD FOR SHIPS GUNS.

No.- 256,124. Patented Apr. 11,1882.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

N. B CLARK.

SHIELD FOR SHIPS GUNS. No. 256,124. Patented Apr. 11,1882.

N. PETER5V Prime-Lithographer, Wmhinghw. 0 Q

UNETE STATES NATHAN B. CLARK, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SHIELD FOR SHIPS GUNS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 256,124, dated April11, 1882.

Application filed February 28, 1852. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHAN B. CLARK, a citizen of the United States,residing at Germantown, Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia andState of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Armor for War-Ships; and I do declare the followingto be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to theletters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part ofthis specification.

Myinvention relates to improvements in armored vessels; audit consistsin details of construction ashereinafterpointedoutandclaimed, the samebeing generally intended for use with such an armored vessel as isdescribed in my Patent No. 231,899, of September 7,1880; but when thepresent improvements are capable of use with vessels of otherconstruction or with fortifications I propose they shall be so used.

In the accornpanyingdrawings, forming part of this specification, Figurel is the plan of the deck of a vessel, (broken in two parts forconvenience of illustration,) showing the outlines of the gun-shields.Fig. 2 is a cross-scetion on line 00 00. Fig. 3 is a similar section online y'y. Fig. 4 is'a plan of one of the hurricane-deck guns and shield.Fig. 5 is a similar plan of one of the broadside-guns and shield. Fig. 6is a plan of gun and shield shown in Fig. 3.

The drawings are intended to represent a cruising-vessel armored on mydeflecting system, having broadside-guns of small caliber, capable ofrapid and continuous fire, and heavy armor-piercing guns, all the gunsbeing protected either in whole or in part by deflectingshields,hereinafter described.

A is the deflecting-shield described in my patent hereinbcfore referredto. This shield covers the engines, boilers, magazines, and other vitalparts of the ship.

13 is the gun-deck for the broadside-battery.

O is the spar-deck, on which the heavy armor-piercin g guns are mounted.

G is the hurricane-d eck, covering only a portion of the ship andcarrying lighter guns, capable of being trained in any direction.

D is the frame 0! the vessel below the main shield A.

E is the side of the vessel above the main shield, which side should befilled in with cotton, cork, or similar material, as described in mypatent.

The turrets or rotating gun-shields F and F are supported on hollowcolumns G. These columns G are strong enough to resist the heaviest shotbetween the shield A and the bottoms of the turrets, which they support,but are made lighter below said shield. The columns form a means ofcommunication between the turrets and that part of the vessel below theshield A by means of openings, as H. It is my purpose to supply thesetubular passages with hydraulic or steam lifts, so that men orammunition may be readily conveyed to or from the turrets. Power foroperating the guns in the turrets may also be supplied by means ofwater-pipes for conveying hydraulic pressure or by other similar means.

The columns G are supported on journals I, resting in bearings L, andmay be rotated by pinions operatingon the gears K, or otherwise, asfound desirable, the turrets being attached to and rotating with thecolumns. The'columns rest against anti-friction bearings G in orattached to the decks of the vessel. A by draulic lift may be placedunder the pivot I to raise the turret and its supporting-column clear ofobstruction should the turret or bearings becomejammed, which mightoccur from the blow of heavy projectiles striking the shield or columnnear the bearings.

I have shown at F a turret for two guns, circular in plan, having theside at the rear of the guns cylindrical, but the front side, throughwhich the guns pass, inclined, as shown. The trunnions of the guns areshown as supportedjust beneath the inclined armor, but may of course besupported from below. The bottom of the turret rests in a circulardepression in the plate M, which is about flush with the deck (I, andmay be supported in said plate on wheels or rollers, as shown, thethickness of the plate M being sufficient to protect from shot deflectedupward by the shield A,

as well as those that might strike when the vessel rolls.

Thetop of turret F, in rear of the guns, may be open or covered by agrating.

F represents a turret for a single gun, supported on a tubular standard,G; This turret is rounded in the rear of the gun, as shown, but taperingor V-shaped toward the front, the sides being slightly curved, as shown.The turret or shield presents acute-angled deflecting-surfaces toward anenemy when the gun is trained in his direction. The'muzzle of the gunalways projects in front of the shield, and near the top thereof, asshown clearly in Fig. 3. The top of the shield or turret may be turnedin partly over the gun, as shown in Fig. 6. 'A shot striking theturret]? from the front will be deflected sidewise, while a shotstriking the turret F will be thrown upward.

I prefer the perpendicularVor wedge shield for single guns, as givingmost available space in proportion to the weight.

In either of the turrets described I inclose only the breech portion ofthe gun, so thatthe weight of the shield may be reduced to a minimum.

The gun will be loaded by machinery, so that two or three men only willbe required in the turret with the gun. The guns may be trunnioned tothe turrets, or mounted in such a way as to permit a slight recoil, asfound best in practice.

The heavy guns in the turrets may be turned completely round the circle,as shown, and all the turrets guns may be trained to bear on a singleobject in almost any position within range, save as the turretsinterfere with each other, should the hurricane-deck G be omitted. Ihave shown, however, a hurricane-deck, O, on which fourlightgunsaremounted in shields a. of the character shown in Fig. 4. The same formof shield may be used with some of the broadsideguns, as at to. Thesehurricanedeck shields are, however, principallyintended to protect menworking machine-guns to be used against torpedo-boats. These shields aremade in the form of a V or wedge, somewhat rounded, as hereinbeforeexplained, and are preferably only large enough to protect one man. Therear of the shield is open. The gun passes through the sharp edge of theV. These guns are intended to be light rifled guns, or machine-guns, asthe Hotchkiss revolving cannon. The truunions of the gun rest in a pro-5 5 jection from the front of the shield, as shown the shield turns,a'passage is always open at b. The shield 01, carrying its gun, swingson pivots c 0, so as to train the gun sharp fore or aft when desirable.The muzzles of the broadsideguns pass through slots or port-holes in thevessels sides. The pivot c finds a hearing in the deck or beamsoverhead. The pivot c is a pipe or tube extending down through the armorA, and through this tube the am munition may be passed up for the use ofthe gun. As the tube forms the pivot on which through it to the shield,no matter how the gun may be trained.

The small shields a may be turned from below by causing the tubes torotate; but preferably the tubes are fixed, and the shields are turnedby means of a worm, d, on a shaft, 0, engaging with a fixed coggedpinionor segment, f, made in the armored deck. The shaft ehas itsbearings in the sides of the shield, and is rotated by a lever, g,engaging with pinion or ratchet h by means of adog or pawl- Ofcoursethese shields may be turned by levers or other suitable mechanism, and"rest on antifriction rollers, if found desirable. The floor of theselight shields is formed of a light plate, i, secured to the deck; or itmay have a light'fioor to move with the shield. Thetopis covered bylight plating. The shields a are like those last described, beingwedge-shaped in front and open in the rear, and are pivoted on tubes 0,but'are capable of rotation entirely around the circle by means of aworm, d, engaging a pinion,f, on pipe 0, or ,by turning the pipe, asbefore described. 1 f

The shields may be mounted on sponsons projecting over the sides of thevessel, as at 0, so that the guns at may be made to bear directlyforward or aft.

P P, Figs. 2 and 3, are water-tight compartmeuts formed by the vesselsdoublebottom,

into which water is to be admitted as coal and stores are consumed, inorder to immerse the shield A to the proper point before going intoaction.

As the armor of my vessel is of less weight than ordinary armor-clads,she can attain greater speed, and can therefore choose her own positionin combat. In a contest with an armored vessel no attempt would be madeto use the light broadside-guns in the small V- shields, unless it mightbe the machine-guns to fire through the enemys port-holes or into themuzzles' of his heavy guns, which would effectually disable them. Thegun-deck inaction would be generallydeserted, and the whole h upperworks might be shot away Without materially injuring the buoyancy orstability of the vessel, the crew being safely housed be neath theshield A, except the few men en- IIO gaged working the heavy guns, whowould be 7 mored ships, and the shields being sufficient to protect thegunners from projectiles of considerable weight. I

The heavy turret-guns may be used at the same time to search for theVitals of the enemys ship, or to bombard distant objects over the headsof shore-batteries with which the broadside and hurricane-deck guns maybe engaged.

What I claim is- 1. A rotating turret for heavy guns, having the side inthe rear of the gun of a semi-cylindrical form, as shown, and the frontportion, through or over which the muzzle of the gun passes, ofnearly awedge or V shape, as shown and described.

2. Arotating turret for guns, having the side in the rear of the guns ofa semi-cylindrical form, as shown, and the frontportion, through whichthe muzzle-s of the guns pass, sloping or curving downward,substantially as shown and described.

3. A rotating shield for a gun, having its front portion, through whichthe gun passes, of the rounded wedge shape described, its rear open, andbeing pivoted to swing about a fixed point, as described.

4. The V-shaped shield, of substantially the form described, incombination with the pipe 0, through which ammunition may be passed whensaid shield is made to pivot on said pipe, substantially as set forth. 7

5. The pivoted .V-shaped shield carrying a gun, as described, incombination with the side of the vessel pierced with portholes, throughwhich the muzzles of the guns may pass, as set forth.

6. The V-shaped shield described, pivoted below'on a tube passingdownward through the deck, and having its upper pivot in the deck orframing above, substantially as described.

7. The V-shaped shield described, combined with the pinion f, fixed tothe tube 0. for rotating the shield by means of the shaft e and worm d,as set forth.

8. The V-shicld described, in combination with shaft 0, having itsbearings in the sides of the shield, the worm d, pinionf, tube 0, andoperating-lever 9, all the parts being constructed and relativelyarranged substantially in the manner herein described and shown.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

NATHAN n. CLARK.

Witnesses:

W. H. SMILEY, O. E. OONANT.

